Wearable controller for wrist

Abstract

The present invention relates to wearable devices. A wrist-worn sensor for measuring wrist tendon forces corresponding to specific finger motions is provided, the sensor comprising: one or more piezoelectric sensors, wherein the one or more piezoelectric sensors emit electric currents generated upon pressure from wrist tendons on the one or more piezoelectric sensors; and a processing module configured for converting the electric currents generated upon pressure from wrist tendons into signals and for processing the signals for identification of one or more specific finger motions. A method for detecting specific finger movements based on wrist-tendon forces is also provided.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A wrist-worn sensor for measuring wrist tendon forces corresponding to specific finger motions comprising:
 one or more piezoelectric sensors, wherein the one or more piezoelectric sensors emit electric currents generated upon pressure from wrist tendons on the one or more piezoelectric sensors; 
 a support member for supporting the one or more piezoelectric sensors within the support member, wherein the support member comprises one or more mounting slots for fitting and supporting the one or more piezoelectric sensors, the one or more slots being arranged to support the one or more piezoelectric sensors at an oblique angle relative to a surface of the support member such that, in use, a tip of each of the one or more piezoelectric sensor is adjacent a wearer's wrist, wherein the support member further comprises one or more cutouts extending into the one or more slots, at a location proximate an end of the one or more slots; and 
 a processing module configured for converting the electric currents generated upon the pressure from the wrist tendons into signals and for processing the signals for identification of one or more specific finger motions. 
 
     
     
       2. The wrist-wom sensor of  claim 1 , wherein the one or more piezoelectric sensors are cantilever piezoelectric sensors. 
     
     
       3. The wrist-worn sensor of  claim 1 , wherein the one or more piezoelectric sensors are arranged in a linear array; wherein the piezoelectric sensors are spaced apart at their tips by less than 8 mm. 
     
     
       4. The wrist-worn sensor of  claim 1  wherein the one or more piezoelectric sensors comprises a plurality of piezoelectric sensors arranged to overlap partially such that their sensor areas overlap. 
     
     
       5. The wrist-worn sensor of  claim 1 , wherein the support member is formed from an elastomeric material, wherein the elastomeric material filters out low amplitude high frequency signals. 
     
     
       6. The wrist-worn sensor of  claim 1 , wherein the angle is between 5 degrees and 45 degrees. 
     
     
       7. The wrist-worn sensor of  claim 1 , wherein the one or more slots terminate in a series of slits on a surface of the support member, the slits being proximate the wearer's wrist in use such that the tips of the sensors are positioned within said slits. 
     
     
       8. The wrist worn sensor of  claim 1 , wherein the one or more slots extend through the support member. 
     
     
       9. The wrist-worn sensor of  claim 1 , wherein each of the one or more slots comprises a recess for supporting a piezoelectric sensor of the one or more piezoelectric sensors. 
     
     
       10. The wrist-worn sensor of  claim 1  wherein the support member is formed from an upper portion and a lower portion, wherein the one or more slots are formed when the upper portion is engaged with the lower portion. 
     
     
       11. The wrist-worn sensor of  claim 10 , wherein the upper and lower portions comprise a plurality of angled steps arranged to form the one or more slots when the upper and lower portions are in register with each other. 
     
     
       12. The wrist-worn sensor of  claim 11 , wherein the upper portion is pivotably connected to the lower portion. 
     
     
       13. The wrist-worn sensor of  claim 1 , wherein the one or more piezoelectric sensors are arranged such that, in use, the one or more piezoelectric sensors are proximate to one or more of the wearer's Flexor Carpi Ulnaris Tendon, Flexor Digitorum Profundus Tendon and Flexor Digitorum Superficialis Tendon; wherein the one or more piezoelectric sensors are arranged such that, in use, the one or more piezoelectric sensors substantially capture tension applied to any or all of the wearer's wrist tendons. 
     
     
       14. An apparatus comprising the wrist-worn sensor of  claim 1  and a controller module. 
     
     
       15. A computer interface comprising the wrist-worn sensor of  claim 1  and a controller module configured to cause one or more computing devices to automatically execute one or more specific commands upon identification of the one or more of the specific finger motions. 
     
     
       16. A method for detecting specific finger movements based on wrist-tendon forces using the wrist-worn sensor of  claim 1 , the method comprising the steps of:
 emitting the electric currents using the one or more piezoelectric sensors upon the pressure generated from the wrist tendons on the one or more piezoelectric sensors; 
 extracting a set of characteristic features from the signals converted from the electric currents by the processing module; 
 feeding the set of the characteristic features to a trained classifier; and 
 identifying the one or more specific finger motions associated with specific classes of the trained classifier.